Simmer was selected 39th overall by the California Golden Seals at the 1974 Amateur Draft. He split his first three pro seasons between the parent club and the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the Central Hockey League and remained with the franchise when it relocated to Cleveland and was renamed the Barons in 1976.
In August 1977 Simmer attempted to gain a new lease on life when he signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Kings. Matters seemed to regress in 1978-79 as the big left winger played three games with L.A. and spent the rest of the year with the AHL's Springfield Indians. The following year he was called up to the NHL halfway through the season and began turning heads for the first time as a pro.

Both Simmer and the Kings were in an optimistic frame of mind at the dawn of the 1979-80 season. That year he exceeded all expectations by scoring 56 goals and making 101 points. Suddenly he was a well-known sports figure throughout North America, and part of the newly formed Triple Crown Line. Made up of Simmer, Dionne and Taylor, that was respected by every NHL opponent. That year Simmer also scored at least one goal in each of 13 straight games to become the first player to threaten Punch Broadbent's record of 16 that dated back over five decades. After the season, he was named to the NHL's First All-Star Team.

The next year he duplicated his 56-goal output but suffered a devastating compound fracture of his leg, toward the end of the season during a game at Maple Leaf Gardens. His regular-season excellence still garnered him a spot on the NHL First All-Star Team for the second year running. The Kings finished fourth in the overall standings, but in the absence of their star left winger were upset by the New York Rangers in the first round of the playoffs.

Simmer spent the off-season and the early stages of the 1981-82 schedule recuperating from his injury. In an odd turn of events in 1982-83, Simmer recorded nearly twice as many assists (51) as goals (29). More important, he stayed healthy and played in all 80 regular-season games for Los Angeles. The team missed the playoffs, but Simmer's season continued with Team Canada at that year's World Championship.

The Triple Crown Line enjoyed one more year of greatness in 1983-84. Simmer himself rebounded with 44 goals and 92 points. Five games into the 1984-85 schedule, he was traded to the Boston Bruins, where he scored 33 goals and averaged a point per game on a team that was more defensively oriented.
Despite experiencing injury troubles in 1985-86, Simmer scored 36 goals in only 55 games, and his remarkable comeback was acknowledged when he was presented the Bill Masterton Trophy after the season. During his last NHL season, with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1987-88, he spent some time on a line with Mario Lemieux and Craig Simpson but had a difficult year adjusting since he was bounced from one line to the next. He played one last year as a pro with the Eintracht Frankfurt franchise in the West German Bundesliga.

Simmer took a year away from hockey but found he was still missing the game. He provided some offense and experience to the San Diego Gulls of the International Hockey League in 1990-91. After playing one game for the squad in 1991-92, Simmer hung up his skates for good. A resilient and talented sniper, Charlie Simmer scored 342 times in 712 regular-season games.

REGULAR SEASON

PLAYOFFS

Season

Club

League

GP

G

A

TP

PIM

+/-

GP

G

A

TP

PIM

1971-72

Kenora Muskies

MJHL

45

14

31

45

77

1972-73

Kenora Muskies

MJHL

48

43

68

111

57

1973-74

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds

OHA-Jr.

70

45

54

99

137

1974-75

California Golden Seals

NHL

35

8

13

21

26

-2

1974-75

Salt Lake Golden Eagles

CHL

47

12

29

41

86

1975-76

California Golden Seals

NHL

21

1

1

2

22

-9

1975-76

Salt Lake Golden Eagles

CHL

42

23

16

39

96

1976-77

Cleveland Barons

NHL

24

2

0

2

16

-11

1976-77

Salt Lake Golden Eagles

CHL

51

32

30

62

37

1977-78

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

3

0

0

0

2

0

1977-78

Springfield Indians

AHL

75

42

41

83

100

4

0

1

1

5

1978-79

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

38

21

27

48

16

+9

2

1

0

1

2

1978-79

Springfield Indians

AHL

39

13

23

36

33

1979-80

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

64

56

45

101

65

+47

3

2

0

2

0

1980-81

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

65

56

49

105

62

+31

1981-82

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

50

15

24

39

42

-7

10

4

7

11

22

1982-83

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

80

29

51

80

51

0

1982-83

Canada

WEC-A

10

2

3

5

8

1983-84

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

79

44

48

92

78

+7

1984-85

Los Angeles Kings

NHL

5

1

0

1

4

-4

1984-85

Boston Bruins

NHL

63

33

30

63

35

+14

5

2

2

4

2

1985-86

Boston Bruins

NHL

55

36

24

60

42

+12

3

0

0

0

4

1986-87

Boston Bruins

NHL

80

29

40

69

59

+20

1

0

0

0

2

1987-88

Pittsburgh Penguins

NHL

50

11

17

28

24

+6

1988-89

Eintracht Frankfurt

W.German

36

19

32

51

68

4

1

2

3

13

1989-90

1990-91

San Diego Gulls

IHL

43

16

7

23

63

1991-92

San Diego Gulls

IHL

1

0

0

0

0

NHL Totals

712

342

369

711

544

24

9

9

18

32

MJHL First All-Star Team (1973) CHL Second All-Star Team (1977) AHL Second All-Star Team (1978) NHL First All-Star Team (1980, 1981) Bill Masterton Trophy (1986)
Played in NHL All-Star Game (1981, 1984)

Transferred to Cleveland after California franchise relocated, August 26, 1976. Signed as a free agent by Los Angeles, August 8, 1977. Traded to Boston by Los Angeles for Boston's 1st round pick (Dan Gratton) in 1985 NHL Draft, October 24, 1984. Claimed by Pittsburgh from Boston in Waiver Draft, October 5, 1987.